Readers starved for Roykoisms since the columnist's 1997 death were treated to one kind of feast six months ago: One More Time , a collection of columns compiled by his wife and journalist friends. A different but equally satisfying nosh awaits fans in this brief, lavishly illustrated biography. Moe, a daily columnist for the Madison (WI) Capital Times, draws on columns and the few interviews Royko gave, as well as his own interviews with family members, friends, and some of Royko's targets, to fill in the details of the Chicago writer's public and private life. Despite its brevity, The World of Mike Royko rings true: many anecdotes beg to be told in Royko's raspy voice, and his friends' concern is palpable when discussing his painful times, like the sudden death of his first wife Carol when both Roykos were in their 40s. There will no doubt be more comprehensive biographies written down the road; in the meantime, Moe's stories and exclusive pictures recall the best of Royko. Mary Carroll
From the Back Cover
Pull up a stool, tap a beer, and immerse yourself in the world of one of the twentieth century's most celebrated journalists. This abundantly illustrated biography is the first account of the colorful life of newspaperman Mike Royko, the Pulitzer prize-winning columnist who personified Chicago in all its rough-edged charm, yet whose talent was appreciated by readers around the world.
In columns for the Chicago Daily News, then the Chicago Sun-Times, and finally the Chicago Tribune, Royko's biting wit was syndicated in more than 600 newspapers, and he was courted and feared by national political figures. He was even the inspiration for the John Belushi role in the film Continental Divide. But Royko's beginnings could not have been more humble. Raised in a flat above a tavern on Chicago's Polish Northwest Side, Royko -- like the marvelous character he created in his columns, Slats Grobnik -- was a street-smart wiseguy, tending bar though barely a teen.
Drawing on exclusive photos, letters, and interviews with Royko's family and friends, author Doug Moe, himself a daily newspaper columnist, chronicles Royko's remarkable rise to prominence. Seemingly destined for jail or the morgue, the young Royko enlisted in the air force and found his calling after lying his way into a job on the base newspaper. The blunt humor that was his sword as a writer was evident early, but readers will also meet another Royko, a sensitive and often insecure man who wrote more than 100 letters home to the sweetheart he would later marry, who loved classical music as well as neighborhood bars, and who was devastated by his first wife's death but made the most of his second chance at marriage andfatherhood.
Royko honed his knowledge of Chicago politics as a reporter for the legendary City News Bureau before meeting the grueling challenge of a daily newspaper column. In 8,000 columns spanning thirty-four years, Royko's most frequent subject was Chicago's rambunctious politics. His book Boss, a best-selling expose on Mayor Richard J. Daley and his political machine, appeared in 1971. But Royko, who some said "wrote with his fists", also sparred with U.S. presidents, bureaucrats and stuffed shirts, Frank Sinatra, and proponents of political correctness and nouvelle cuisine. He also praised and celebrated barbecued ribs and Chicago softball, the fierce talent of Nelson Algren, the rich variety of Chicago's neighborhoods, and the quiet dignity of ordinary people up against it.
The millions of readers who have missed Royko since his death in 1997 are in for a rare treat, for in The World of Mike Royko he lives again.
About the Author
Doug Moe is the author of several books and a columnist for the Capital Times in Madison, Wisconsin.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
"He typed the last page of Boss late on a Saturday afternoon in 1970 in his office at the Chicago Daily News. Royko ended his book by quoting something Alderman Paddy Brauler had said in 1955, when Daley was first elected. 'Chicago ain't ready for reform yet,' Brauler had said. Royko's conclusion: 'And in 1970, like it or not, it wasn't getting any.'
Royko pulled the page from the typewriter, put it under the others in the large stack, and walked to Riccardo's, a Chicago restaurant and bar on Rush Street near the newspaper. The bar was quiet and Royko ordered a martini, not his usual drink of choice. This was, after all, quite a moment.
The bartender, who knew him, said, 'What's going on, Mike? Celebrating?'
'I guess so,' Royko said. 'I just finished a book.'
'Yeah?' the bartender said. 'Me, too.' He reached under the bar and handed Royko a paperback. 'You can read it. It's by Mickey Spillane.'"
The World of Mike Royko is the first biography of one of this country's most revered news columnists. With the help of Mike's brother Bob Royko, Madison journalist Doug Moe has gathered unpublished photos, biographical info and reminiscences from family, friends and co-workers to present a portrait of Chicago's favorite iconoclast and quintessential working-class hero.
